No More Games
by Soulless Scotsman
Summary: The l'Cie get a little help from someone who shouldn't exist. PSICOM won't know what hit 'em.
1. Seeds of Doubt

**No More Games**

**A "Life is a Game" Story**

Disclaimer: I don't even own the idea(that's RebukeX7's), but I do own Lieutenant "Soulless".

* * *

**-Jenny's Café, Bodhum Shopping District-**

* * *

"I'm a soldier. From a family of soldiers. Every branch of the military has had a member of my family in it, hell, even in its command structure. My grandfather was a general in the Army, and his brother was an admiral. I enlisted right out of highschool. Spent five years in the US Army, two of those as a grunt, one in OCS and getting my bearings as an officer, and the rest in the Rangers. Made it to First Lieutenant."

Two people sat in an upscale café in Bodhum. One was a woman with pink hair and wore a Guardian Corps Dress Uniform, and the other looked like he came straight off a battlefield. He wore an olive drab hooded ensemble that had black rectangular patches on his shoulders, black coloring under his arms and on his sides, reinforced padding on his elbows and knees, olive drab cargo pants and a utility belt with a very large holstered handgun and a very long knife. His face was covered by a black balaclava and orange tac-goggles with an attached com unit hung around his neck. His half lidded green eyes stared lazily back at the aqua glare the GC woman was giving him.

The pinkette sitting across from him snorted, "Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

"It means I outrank you, Sergeant, even if we're not in the same military. So at least show my rank the respect its due, even if you don't respect me. Now will you let me finish?"

There was an audible "clack" as the second person snapped her jaw shut, "Yes...Sir."

The Ranger sighed, "Just call me Soulless, Farron. Everyone else does. And before you ask, the reason I'm telling you this? So that you understand."

"Understand _what_?"

The man leaned forward, "That, when it comes right down to it, I'm _just a man_. I have a few tricks up my sleeves, sure. But I'm nowhere near as powerful as some of the others. I _have_ to be more hands on than them. I have a rifle, a knife, a sidearm, some hand grenades,some basic intel, and that's it. On top of that, I have to rely on the others to get anywhere, because I can't do it myself. Rebuke and Jorn can pretty much do as they bloody well please. They have that kind of leeway. I, on the other hand, have to get in the proverbial trenches and risk my neck every time I want to do some good. To be honest, I prefer it this way. It makes it so that I can get my VIPs to trust me, which makes it easier when we have to call for _your _help."

"What the hell makes you think I'll trust you?"

Soulless chuckled, "Nothing. And you don't. But that's good. If you did trust someone who came out of nowhere and said not only that they'd help you save the world from the things you thought were protecting you, but also that you're not the only you? That there is another you out there, in the Multiverse, working towards our goals? I'd be worried if you believed it after our first conversation. It means you're a damn sight smarter than the average bear."

She rose one delicate pink eyebrow, "'Average bear'?"

He waved a hand dismissively, "You don't have those here, I don't think, so you wouldn't understand. My point is, that if you work with me, you can do what any good soldier aspires to do: save lives. Like your sister's."

Lightning snarled at him, "Leave Serah out of this."

If Soulless was intimidated, he didn't show it.

"Are you done?" he asked.

Lightning leaned back in her chair and fixed the interloper with a smoldering glare.

"Good. Now that you're done having a hissy fit, you can listen to me. Like I said, your fal'Cie are lying to you. All you are is a giant, mad plan to get the Maker, or whatever, to come back from the dead. Or something like that."

Lightning stiffened, "What you're saying is insane. Why would the fal'Cie do that?"

Soulless shrugged, "I don't pretend to understand the minds of Eldritch Abominations, Sergeant. I'm telling you what I know, that's all. I'm not even asking you to believe me. But, there will be a time when you will question everything you know, very soon. And you'll come looking for me."

Lightning looked around at the other patrons of the café. They looked completely oblivious to the soldier and herself.

"Why haven't they noticed you?" she asked, genuinely curious. The Guardian Corps should have been crawling all over this place.

"Perception filter. Gift from one of the others. Only you, and other important figures can see past it."

She blinked. What the hell was a perception filter?

"Go home, Sergeant. Be with your sister."

Lightning stood up, regarding the man with a cautious look.

"Why me?" was all she could muster.

He looked up at her, and she saw pain and sadness in his eyes the likes of which she could not fathom.

"You have, every incarnation of you, in fact, the potential to become more powerful than a god. I tried for that, but I couldn't. I'm just an above average mortal. People died because of that. But, you? I can help you reach your full potential. No one has to die, because I won't let you fail."

He looked her in the eyes, and she saw a will of iron in his own.

"The world you know and love is about to be turned on it's head. You're going to be right at the center, fighting to maintain the peace. And I'm going to be right there, making sure you, Claire Farron, survive to become the Warrior Goddess you need to be."

* * *

-**Bodhum Guardian Corps Headquarters.**-

* * *

"That's all? He just left you with some bad ideas rattling in your head? Did he make any threats?" Lieutenant Amodar inquired after he heard his best sergeant voice her concerns.

Sergeant Farron stopped a bit, "No, but... He knew my name, Sir. My _real name_. No one uses my name. Only Serah does. I'm even listed as Lightning in the GC Public Records."

Amodar grunted, "Well, I'll look into it. Was there anything else?"

"He had two patches on his shoulders. One was of a dog or something howling at a full moon, and the other was a red, white and blue flag. It had thirteen red and white stripes and a blue rectangle with at least fifty stars on it. Other than that, all he had was a silver lieutenant's bar on his collar and pair of dogtags that said he was part of the 'US Army'. Whatever that is. I couldn't see his name, it was scratched out. His blood type is O-Negative."

"O-Negative? That's exceedingly rare. Well, if it's some whack-job, finding him will be pretty easy. Could you guess how tall he was?"

The pinkette nodded, "Over two meters. Easy."

The GC Lieutenant leaned back in his chair, surprised, "Alright, are you sure it wasn't Snow Villiers?"

"Snow doesn't have green eyes, Sir. His voice was too deep, as well. He was too...worn. Tired. Snow is more like a hyperactive child. This man was a combat veteran, and if he's to be believed, an experienced one. When he reached for a cup of coffee he had waiting for me, his sleeve hiked up a bit; his skin was too dark and he had more scars then you and me put together. Bullets wounds, cuts, you name it. It wasn't pretty."

Amodar rose one eyebrow, "Self inflicted?"

She shrugged, "Not that I could tell."

"Like I said, I'll look into it. Not sure I'll find anything, but hell, it's worth a shot. But only on one condition: take a break. Your birthday's in a week, yeah? Well, you've got a week of paid vacation, staring on your birthday. Non-negotiable."

Lightning grimaced, "Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir."

Amodar chuckled, "Dismissed, Sergeant Farron."

* * *

**-Empty Warehouse Building, Outside Bodhum-**

* * *

Soulless keyed the com unit on his goggles, "Ma'am? It's me. I got the crates your boss sent me. The MA37s and modded MA5s will come in handy. I'm having a hard time figuring out how the M392's, M395s, BR55s and BR55HB SRs are going to come in, but they're not unwelcome."

He lifted the top off an olive drab metal crate, "That crate of standard and bullpup SRS99s is appreciated, as well. Yeah, I got the M7s and M6s. Look, Ma'am, I'm just a simple soldier. All this advanced hardware...I don't plan on getting civvies involved, not if I can help it. I mean, I'm just learning this stuff, I doubt I could teach a bunch of green as grass civvies to use them...I hadn't thought of that. Yeah, I'll contact NORA. I just hope they're quicker with this 26th Century tech than I was. No, I'm just having a hard time with all this. After a few months, you'd think I'd've gotten used to it. I still feel like a caveman playing with fire," he said as he moved a crate labeled "C12" from a crate labeled "8000 Count Soellkraft 8 Gauge Buckshot Shells".

"I said I'd try to help any way I could, but, sending me to the worlds that didn't require the others attention? I'm out of my depth, here. War is my specialty, but this isn't war. It's a goddamn revolution in the making," Soulless almost tripped over a crate at what she said next, "What the hell do you mean, 'Then I guess I should send in the heavy weapons'?!"

* * *

-**3 Day's Later, Lebreau's Bar, Bodhum.**-

* * *

Lebreau was in shock. Scratch that, she was damn near comatose. She goes to open her bar one morning, and what does she find? Enough weapons to arm the entirety of Bodhum thrice over and then some! Who the hell-?!

"_You have a new message!_" the computerized voice of her phone chimed. She scrambled for it and saw that there was a text message.

_Hey,_

_I noticed that you and NORA are pretty ill-equiped. Consider this my way of saying,"Keep up the good work!" Plenty of hardware to help you whether the coming storm._

_Signed,_

_The Timber Wolf_

Lebreau stared at the message with a slack jaw.

"...Who the hell said we were ill-equiped!?"

* * *

-**Same Day, NORA Headquarters, Under Lebreau's Bar**-

* * *

"This is the mother load!" Snow shouted.

Maqui was over the moon, "This tech is unbelievable. These rifles, the ones with the ammo counters? They have a smart-link IF/F targeting system that connects to these glasses. They use infrared to communicate with each other. Target a person wearing these glasses, and the reticule turns green. Target someone unarmed, and it turns yellow. Target an armed combatant not transmitting this signal, and it turns red. The scoped rifles have a similar feature. And these hacking tools!"

Yuj held up a com unit, "These are pretty intense. The encryption unit on this communication network suite is nuts. I doubt even Sanctum's top could crack this."

Gadot held up an M247 LMG SAW, "Oh, I like _this_ one. Dibs."

"Then I get this!" Snow hefted an M90 CAWS MK I, "Seems more my style, up close and personal."

Lebreau examined another rifle, this one an MA37 Assault Rifle. It was utilitarian, meant to work and keep working, not impress. Thirty-two rounds, fully automatic. Simple to use, simple to maintain.

"I'll take this. Not too pretty, but I get the feeling it'll serve my purposes more than adequately."

Yuj picked up a BR55HB SR, "Little big, but I think I can make it work," he then picked up an M7S and tossed it to Maqui, "This looks like a good choice for you, man. Nice and quiet."

"Glad you like it. Wasn't easy convincing the Powers that Be to ship all that here. Mind you, when I told them it was going to help in the long run, they were more than willing."

Suddenly, all the weapons in the room were pointed at one man.

Said man had to restrain himself from laughing. He held his sides as he curled over on himself.

"You forgot to load them." he managed through his his repressed fits of laughter.

Snow grabbed a shell, loaded it into the shotgun and wracked the pump.

The mystery man immediately sobered up, "Well, you're not incompetent, I'll give you that. But let me offer you some advice."

He walked up to Snow and grabbed the shotgun from him, "Next time, turn the safety _off_. And be sure you're ready to pull the trigger, because the next time you point a gun at me," he got right up in Snow's face, "_I will break you_."

Snow grimaced and pushed him off, "You're the wacko that's got Lightning spooked."

Lebreau thought she saw him raise an eyebrow, "'Wacko'? I thought I came across as rather sane."

"From what she told Serah, you said some pretty outlandish things."

"Didn't make it any less true. And if anything's going to be done about it, you need to know some things. Starting with the truth about the fal'Cie."

He told them. And they listened.

The Seeds of Doubt were Sown. The Revolution had begun.

* * *

A/N: So, I've started a companion story to RebukeX7's LIAG series, with his consent, and this is the first chapter. Let me know what you think.


	2. There's Always a Price

_**There's Always a Price**_

_**"The currency of any monumental change, is in blood."-Unknown**_

* * *

**-Cocoon Power Plant-**

* * *

Dajh was confused. All he wanted to do was see a fal'Cie, so why was this really tall guy carrying him back to his dad?

"I know what you're thinking," the man spoke, "And you did nothing wrong. It's just not safe being that close to a fal'Cie."

Now Dahj was really confused, "But, I thought they protected us?"

The man chuckled a bit, "Better safe than sorry, kid."

So the man brought him back to his dad, his dad thanked him, and then he disappeared.

* * *

-**Pulse Vestige, Bodhum**-

* * *

'_Ugly motherfucker,_' Soulless thought to himself as he looked at the fal'Cie known as Anima.

He let the BR55HB SR rest on his shoulder, barrel up, "You and I need to have a chat, Annie. One monster to another."

Anima didn't even twitch.

Soulless grunted and let his rifle hang off the sling, "Right. Plan B," he said as he hefted a Spartan Laser.

He started the charging sequence, "Wakey-wakey, you son of a bitch! I'm talking to you!"

All sound seemed to stop. Red light filled the vestige as he shot the fal'Cie. Sound filtered back into reality like it was coming through a bad speaker, then cleared. It shrieked in pain and anger, waking up from its hibernation.

"_**WHO DARES WOUND ME?!**_"

Its voice was fearsome. Horrible. Every negative emotion you could think of found its way into the voice of Anima.

But Soulless had lost all sense of fear and horror long ago.

He was cold, now.

"I, Monster! I _dare_!"

"_**THEN PREPARE TO DIE, FOOLISH MORTAL.**_"

Anima put everything it had into killing him, he could tell. But it wasn't enough.

With an almost lazy wave of his arm, Soulless disrupted the fal'Cie's attacks. With another wave, Anima froze.

"_**W-WHAT IS THIS?!**_" it roared, writhing against invisible bonds.

Soulless lowered the Spartan Laser and leaned on it, "Your new collar, monster. You serve _me_ now. You do as _I_ wish. And my first order of business?"

He rose his arm again and slowly clenched his fist. Anima howled and thrashed, in obvious pain. It glowed white, then flashed.

When the light died down, the gruesome Anima was gone. In its place was a woman with hair the color of smoke. On her knees, huddled in on herself and shaking, Soulless almost felt remorse. She was tall and lithe, but not skinny. And her face...

"Well, now. Where have I seen that face before?" Soulless muttered.

He walked over to a pair of crystal statues cupped the chin of the taller one, "Ah, yes, right here. You're related to her, aren't you, monster?"

Anima snarled, "Don't touch her!"

Soulless smirked under his mask, "Oho, that was rather violent! I wonder, how did it feel to turn your own kin into a walking time-bomb? Hmm?"

He drew his sidearm and pointed it at the statue's head, "This is the deal. You do as I say, and she lives. Step out of line..."

She cut him off, "I get it."

Soulless holstered the gun, "Good."

"You're a monster," she spat.

Soulless' entire body went rigid, then he relaxed, "Yeah. I am. But not always monstrous."

The interloper walked away from the statues and they started to change, "You've got five-hundred some-odd years to make up for. I'd suggest getting to it."

Before he left he turned to the fal'Cie in human form, "Keep your kin here. They'll be safe. However, when a group of young ones come to your vestige, grant them the powers of l'Cie, but do not brand them. They will be in the company of the ones who would be the Warrior Goddess and the Seer Goddess. You will know them. And you and your kin will help them."

"Etro will destroy you for this transgression," Anima said.

The interloper turned back to leave, "Etro and I have an agreement. I save Cocoon, humanity and her daughters, she lets them help in the End Game."

And he left.

* * *

**-Outside the Pulse Vestige-**

* * *

Serah was ecstatic! She had found an entrance to the Bodhum Vestige! She couldn't believe her luck, she-

She suddenly felt very tired.

When Serah keeled over, Soulless made sure to catch her.

* * *

**-Lightning's House, Bodhum-**

* * *

Lightning stared at her sister, who was currently asleep on her couch.

Sighing, she gently grabbed Serah's shoulder, "Serah? Serah, you need to wake up."

Serah murmured to herself, turning over.

"Serah, seriously. Wake up," Lightning poked her in the side. Hard.

Serah yelped.

"Claire! That hurt!"

"You're on my couch," was all Lightning said, "You were _a__sleep_ on my couch."

"Huh?" Serah intelligently replied.

"I locked my doors. How did you get in?"

"I don't know," the younger Farron replied, "One moment I'm outside the Bodhum Vestige, the next you're poking me in the side."

"YOU WERE WHERE?!" Lightning shrieked.

'_Oh, shit!_' was Serah's last thought before her sister started lecturing. Loudly.

* * *

**-NORA Headquarters, Firing Range-**

* * *

"Short, controlled bursts! Do _not_ spray and pray!"

Soulless paced up and down the "Cold Zone" of the impromptu firing range, shouting at the members of NORA for every mistake made.

"Yuj! Aim center mass! Don't try for headshots until you're a better shot."

Yuj adjusted his aim and shot the practice dummy right in the heart.

"Gadot! When I said 'short, controlled bursts,' I meant you, too! Shape up!"

Gadot grumbled, but complied at the look Snow sent him.

"Maqui! Adjust your stance, or you're going to get knocked on your ass every time you try to fire that M6C!"

Maqui shifted his stance and squeezed off a round. Instead of being knocked back, his body absorbed the recoil and he realized he could keep firing.

When he had emptied and cleared the pistol, Soulless ruffled his hair with a chuckle.

"Nice job, kid. Keep aiming like that, and I'll train you to use an M392."

Maqui looked at Soulless, then his target, in disbelief. Eight out of eight headshots.

Soulless moved on, "Lebreau! Hold on a sec, I need to talk to you about your choice in weapons."

Lebreau looked confused, "What? Why?"

"Your hit to miss ratio is outstanding. I thought you might want to try this."

As he said this he held out an M395 Designated Marksman Rifle.

Lebreau was in love.

"Yes, please," she said in a very small, and very awed voice.

He handed it to her and took her MA37, "That thing kicks like a chocobo, so be careful."

Lebreau could barely hear him. She was off in her own little world.

Soulless shook his head and looked at Snow, "You confident with that?" he asked, referring to the shotgun.

The other tall man nodded, "I am. Thing's nasty. Chewed my training dummy up like it was paper."

"If that's got you squeamish, you aren't going to like what it does to fleshy targets."

Snow grimaced.

* * *

**-Guardian Corps Central Headquarters-**

* * *

High General Markus Corvus was not a complicated man. He had joined the Corps to defend Cocoon's citizens. That's what he always told Sanctum. "The safety of our civilian population is paramount when compared to any black-ops bullshit PSICOM wants to pull." Protect the civilians first, then go after the things attacking them.

But to think that Sanctum had a protocol called "Civilian Purge" for if/when Pulse invaded Cocoon?

He was infuriated.

He stared at the man who had brought this to his attention, unsure of what to make of him. He wore the standard uniform for soldiers stationed on the Lindblum, minus the helmet. That had been replaced with a matching blue hood, a mask, and orange ballistic goggles.

"What did you say your name was, son?"

He saluted, "Soul Strife, Sir. First Lieutenant Soul Strife."

"And you say you found this while looking for an old reg in Sanctum for Raines? Just hanging off of someone's desk?"

"Yes, Sir. I made a copy of it and showed it to him. I was then ordered to bring it to you."

Corvus grunted, "Tell Raines to get ready."

The Lieutenant cocked his head to the side in confusion, "For what, Sir?"

The General of all the Guardian Corps donned his cap, "For a civil war with Sanctum and PSICOM. This wouldn't just be hanging around for no reason. They've found something from Pulse, and they're going to kill civilians to cover it up."

"But not while the Guardian Corps is under your command, right, Sir?"

The Guardian Corps' Old Man smirked, "That's right, son. Galenth and his lackeys wont be getting away with this."

He walked over to a console and punched in a command code, "All Guardian Corps commanders, this is General Corvus with a new general order; in the event that Sanctum orders something called a 'Purge', I want all Guardian Corps units to prevent it by any means necessary. Sanctum and PSICOM have over stepped their bounds for the last time. This order is to be disseminated throughout the ranks personally by each unit's commanding officer. All Corps soldiers are also hereby ordered to keep this order, and any subsequent orders classified. No one outside the Corps is to find out. That is all."

Soulless smirked. Maybe he was good at revolutions, after all.

* * *

**-X7 Headquarters-**

* * *

Soulless walked up to the Boss' familiar...god...thing.

"Izanami, have you and the Boss got a moment? I have a report on the situation in Cocoon."

She looked at him, surprised, "**_Oh, Soulless. We weren't expecting you for a while. What do you need Rebuke and __I for?_**"

"I have a plan to resolve the issue in a more efficient manner. I think Rebuff and Maaka should be here for my report, as well. My plan involves them rather heavily."

Izanami raised one white eyebrow, "**_I'll see what I can do, but they might be__ busy._**"

"I left the world 'Paused', I've got time to wait."

* * *

**-Rebuke's Office-**

* * *

"So, you expect me to _make _a random dimension out of thin air to help you train some wannabe resistance?" The third in command asked bluntly as she stared at Soulless.

"Yes, I understand if it might be asking for a bit much-" Soulless was cut off as the woman snorted.

"Please, just use the one I made four months ago." Rebuff said as she tossed him a rectangular object, "Just press the red button and it'll send whoever you want there, I don't feel like making another one, so don't break it."

"Wait, hold up," Rebuke interrupted as he looked at the woman with an eye twitch, "You mean to tell me that you had the perfect training device with you for _four _months?"

"Yup."

"The fuck? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Ya didn't ask. Besides, you pretty much reached your cap, it's not like it could help you." Rebuff pointed out, which was not an unreasonable point.

"Still, when you have projects like that you should tell me-"

"Why? So you can get us stranded in the Saints Row universe again!" Rebuff shouted as she glared at her boss.

"Hey, it wasn't my fault! Who the hell makes a device-"

"Can we please stay on topic?" Soulless muttered before taking a step back at the glares he received. Rebuke sighed and waved his technician off.

"Sorry, but next time inform me of your inventions, okay?"

Rebuff nodded as she left, "Gotcha' boss."

Rebuke sighed, "That woman. Don't know if I love her enough to marry her some days, or hate her enough to try and kill her."

Soulless shrugged, "To useful to kill, Sir."

Rebuke grunted, "True. You sure I didn't hire you to work as an advisor?"

"You hired me because I'm a guy who kills bad guys. And I'm very good at it."

"True and true. Again. Gotta say, I'm impressed, Soul."

Soul stood up straighter, "Thank you, Sir."

Rebuke "hmmed" in thought, "Your idea for our operatives to circumvent the limitations of Rebuff's 'Cheat' System by bringing new recruits here to train is ingenious. We can step up training by at least fifty percent."

"Rebuff's 'God Collars' should be very useful, too, Sir. Interesting note, Sir; Anima might be Oerba Yun Fang's mother. That gives us leverage."

Rebuke blinked in shock at that little tidbit of information before folding his hands underneath his chin.

"Soulless..." Rebuke began with a drawl as he stared at the soldier.

"Yes, Sir?"

"If you succeed in this Cocoon mission, I hope you are prepared to multi-task."

"What do you mean, Sir?"

"You are _so _getting promoted. I know you aren't meant for a desk job, so you'll need to learn how to do paperwork while dodging bullets."

"Promoted to what exactly? There's no Job that I _could_ take," Soulless said as he stared at the white haired man, who looked no older than nine-teen.

'_Looks are deceiving, the age behind those eyes is astounding,_' Soulless didn't want to take any of his superiors' jobs...on account of the fact that they were all bat-shit insane and he _really _didn't want to be the target of Rebuff's ire.

"Jorn wanted to create a black ops faction within our headquarters, "White Room", and we need someone to lead it." Rebuke began as he stood up and walked to his window. "But you will be more than just a simple group that fights in the shadows. Should you succeed, you will take over in the event that the "White Room" should fall. Do you accept?"

"Sir, yes, Sir! I won't fail this mission." The soldier said intensely.

"Would it kill you to smile?" Rebuke asked with a smirk.

"I've forgotten how to, Sir," Soulless said bluntly making his boss shake his head.

* * *

**-Maaka's Training Grounds-**

* * *

"So, you want me to help you train some brats? Why? I taught you well enough do it yourself," Maaka told Soulless with a slight southern drawl.

"But I need to get this done as quick as possible," Soulless said as he stared at his mentor.

"Hmph. Fine, since this is the first time you've actually asked me for anything, I'll help...if you can pay the price." The large man said with a grin, making soulless roll his eyes.

"Free steak dinners for a year."

"Five."

"Three."

"Deal, Cadet." Maaka said with a wide grin, making the stoic soldier roll his eyes. Again.

"I stopped being a cadet a while ago, Sir."

"As long as I still have the photo of you nearly breaking your arm due to your weapon's recoil, I'll call you 'Cadet'." Maaka said as he left the room.

'_I will find that photo and destroy it,_' Soulless swore to himself.

"By the way," Maaka said, turning from the door, "What the hell kind of uniform is that?"

"My take on the Lindblum's GC standard uniform."

Maaka shook his head, "You and your masks."

* * *

**-Outside Rebukes Office, X7 Headquarters.-**

* * *

Just before going back to Cocoon, Soul decided to talk to one of his few friends in X7.

"Hey, Izanami. Got a minute to talk?" he asked as he lowered his hood and took off his mask.

The Familiar/God/Thing looked up from her paperwork and smiled, "**_Oh, hello again, Soulless. I understand the meeting went very well._**"

Soulless nodded, "It did. Boss said he might promote me for my ideas."

She raised an eyebrow skeptically, "**_How uncharacteristically forward thinking of him._**"

"_I heard that!_" came Rebuke's muffled cry.

Izanami "hmmphed" at her master and Soul smiled a very small smile.

This did not go unnoticed by Izanami.

She sat at her desk, slack-jawed and blushing ever so slightly. She quickly regained her composure and began muttering to herself as she worked.

"**_Should be a crime to smile like that...Too bad Rebuff missed it..._**"

Soul's brow furrowed, "What was that?"

Izanami shook her head, "_**Nothing, Soul. How have you been, anyway?**_"

"Better. Not having the nightmares anymore. I miss my sister, but..." he shrugged, "That's why I'm here, isn't it? For her."

"_**Very true, Soul. You know, despite being very new at this, you are surprisingly well adapted.**_"

"Unofficial motto of my family, 'Nami; Adapt. Improvise. _Overcome_."

Izanami hummed. She checked off a few things on a list.

"Hey, 'Nami? You can use my real name, you know."

"_**I realize,**_" she said, "_**But Rebuke is behind that door. I don't want him to find out your real name, not when you told me in confidence. Besides,**_" she went on, mischief sparkling in her red eyes, "_**It's one of the few things he **_**can't**_** order me to tell him.**_"

"_Dammit, Izanami!_" Rebuke howled.

Soul smiled again, this time wider, "You're a good friend, 'Nami. Rebuke's lucky to have you."

Izanami giggled, "**_Thank you Soul. At least I know _someone_ appreciates me._**"

"Drinks are on me when I get back, okay? We need to hang out more, and I intend to fix that," he said as he turned to leave.

Izanami waved goodbye.

When he was gone, Rebuff rounded the corner, "My 'Soulless Took Off His Mask and is Now Smiling' senses went off. Big time."

"**Just**_** missed him,**_" Izanami held out her hand pinched her thumb and forefinger together, "_**By **_**this**_** much.**_"

Rebuff screamed/cried.

* * *

**-****NORA Headquarters, Bodhum****-**

* * *

"Where'd you go?" Yuj asked Soul when he returned.

"Stepped out for a second. How's the aim?"

"Better," Yuj began, "But there's a reason Lebreau's the group sniper."

Both men looked to the woman in question. She had moved on from the DMR to one of the bullpup snipers.

"Is it wrong of me to think she makes sniping sexy?" Gadot asked no one in particular.

"No," Maqui answered.

"What the hell, guys?" Snow barked, "She's my cousin!"

Everyone except Soulless recoiled.

"Yes," Maqui amended, "It is suddenly _very_ wrong."

"Don't know any of you well enough for that to deter me."

Snow looked desperate, "I thought you were celibate or something!"

"I'm _emotionally_ dead. Not _dead_, dead."

Snow palmed his face, "This must be how Light feels. I need to apologize to her when Serah and I tell her."

* * *

**-General Raines' Office, Airship Lindblum, Patrolling Cocoon Airspace.-**

* * *

Brigadier General Cid Raines stared at the General Order in utter shock. Corvus had finally had enough of Dysley's bullshit and had declared a Corps Wide Red Alert. They were at war.

"Rydgea," Raines spoke, "Are you comfortable with this order?"

His 2IC snorted, "If the Old Man says enough is enough, I'm all for it. Sanctum's off it's damned rocker if they think we'll let something like a 'Purge' fly. Ask any other GC soldier, from the lowest grunt, all the way to yourself; they'll say the same damn thing."

"Agreed," Raines said with a smirk, "Set course for Bodhum. The file Lieutenant Strife found mentions it far too frequently for my tastes."

Rydgea saluted, "Yes, Sir."

"And set the fleet to Red Alert. If PSICOM so much as _twitches_ in our general direction, I want to know the _millisecond_ it happens."

* * *

**-Lieutenant Amodar's Office, Bodhum Security Regiment Headquarters.-**

* * *

Amodar ordered all of the GC soldiers in Bodhum to an emergency meeting.

"Alright, everyone settle down!" he barked at his soldiers, "I just received a new general order from HIGHCOM. As of this moment, we are at war."

Lightning raised her hand, and Amodar nodded to her in ascent.

"With who, Sir? Pulse was wiped out in the War of Transgression."

"Farron, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish it was Pulse. We, the Guardian Corps, are at war, people, with PSICOM and the Sanctum."

All was quiet. Then it it wasn't.

"PSICOM!? This is a civil war?!"

"What the hell is the Old Man thinking?!"

"_**ENOUGH!**_" Amodar roared, "General Corvus has recently come into possession of information that PSICOM will be moving on _civilian targets_. They will be killing non-combatants to cover up the fact that there's a Pulse Vestige somewhere in Cocoon. We do not know where it is, or what it looks like. Our job, people, is to maintain the peace and kick any and all PSICOM forces out of Bodhum. In the event that the Vestige is found, the Cavalry will be sent-"

"Sir! Cavalry forces have been spotted in Bodhum airspace!"

"**_WHAT?!_**"

Lightning palmed her face, "Oh, Maker. Oh, fucking Maker!" she whispered, then she realized something, "Sir! It's the Bodhum Vestige! That's the Pulse Threat!"

"_I'm not even asking you to believe me. But, there will be a time when you will question everything you know, very soon. And you'll come looking for me._"

Lightning shot to her feet, "Sir! Permission to arrest the terrorist known as Soulless!"

Amodar nodded, "Take your squad. I want to know what he had to do with this."

She nodded, "Voltage Squad, on me!"

"Understood!"

"Got it, Sarge!"

* * *

**-Jenny's Café, Bodhum Shopping District-**

* * *

Soulless sat at the same table he had met Lightning at. And he waited.

He was not disappointed.

"Well, I hardly think the GC squad is necessary, Sergeant Farron. If you wanted to see me, all you had to do was show up in that dress uniform of yours. Very flattering to your figure."

Her Blazfire Sabre was suddenly at his neck.

"Who the _fuck_ do you think you are that you can instigate a civil war?"

"A very desperate man, Sergeant Farron. This _needs_ to happen. People need to realize that the government is _not_ under their control."

"That's just an excuse to cause chaos."

Soulless regarded her coldly, "Do you think I like war, Sergeant? I don't. I _hate_ it. I hate it more than you could ever know. Because war turns good, honest people into monsters. Like me. But here's the thing; I realize war is a necessary evil. And that that doesn't change the fact it's still evil. But when it comes right down to it," he leaned forward, heedless of the sword at his throat, "I'm a guy who kills bad guys. And this world is _rife_ with them."

Lightning lowered her sword, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Soulless stood, using his massive height to loom over the shorter woman, "I am fighting god level entities on all sides. Your Primearch is a fal'Cie in disguise, with less regard for human life than you have for an ant under your boot. The very goddess that birthed this iteration of humanity, while on my side, is a woman with a _staggering_ lack of foresight and almost no regard for the consequences of her actions. Lindzei is borderline psychotic, and Hallowed Pulse is an egomaniac. And don't even get me started on all the other fal'Cie. Anima's the only one I have a solid lock on, and that's because I held a gun to her daughter's head."

This time, a feral growl entered his voice, "So, yes. I am a _very_ desperate man. And I will stop at nothing to save every last man, woman and child on this god forsaken rock. And if that means I have to cut a bloody path right through PSICOM to get to Barthandelus, I'll do it. If I have to enslave all the fal'Cie of Cocoon and Gran Pulse, I'll do it. If it means I have to start a civil war, _I'll do it without even blinking_. That's how desperate my organization is."

"...And you're saying we've been manipulated? By Dysley? Or Barthandelus, or whatever," Lightning asked, motioning for the rest of her squad to lower their weapons.

Soulless spread his arms and looked to the heavens in exasperation, "She _learns_! Oh, I am _impressed_!"

He whirled on her, "_Yes_, you stupid little, girl! That is _exactly_ what I'm saying! You, and the rest of your ilk are _nothing_ but pawns!"

Soulless saw something in Lightning's eyes. Something that made him realize that she would be more powerful than he would ever be.

Pure, unadulterated, _righteous_ _fury_.

And she punched him. Right in the jaw.

"You think that we're nothing but pawns?!" she howled like a banshee, "You think that you can just manipulate us like you're saying the fal'Cie do?! I'll show you just what these 'pawns' can do, you bastard!"

Soulless held his jaw. She'd damn near broke it!

"And when I'm done fighting this Maker-forsaken war!" Lightning continued, "I'll kick your condescending ass up and down Cocoon!"

Her shoulders rose and fell with every breath. Her face was red and her squad stared at her in shock. Lot of that going around, eh?

Soulless' shoulders shook. Little sounds escaped his lips and Lightning realized it was laughing.

That just pissed her off more.

"What?!" she screamed, "What the hell is so funny?!"

Soul righted himself and stood straight once more, "You are _exactly_ what X7 needs. Now I _have_ to make sure you live."

All the fight just left Lightning.

"What?"

"That fire, that _passion_, that is exactly why you are this world's foremost hero. You will be the deciding factor of the this war. Not armies, not rifles , not who the public sides with," Soulless poked her right in the junction of her collarbones, "But _y__ou_. You will be the one to decide the outcome of this war."

Lightning batted the offending limb away from her. For some reason, his touch had...unusual effects.

"Now," Soulless said, obvious glee in his voice, "Let's go gear up for a war."

* * *

A/N: Second chapter. Let me know what you guys think.


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